ST. LOUIS – An elderly man survived, what could have been a deadly house fire, thanks to the courage of a neighbor.
Emmitt Powell was alone in his home in the 4800 block of Margaretta cooking something for lunch Friday afternoon, when he apparently forgot and fell asleep on the couch.
That could have been a recipe for disaster if it wasn’t for the hero next door.
“I told my auntie, that’s Emmitt’s house I know he’s in there,” said Cathryn Steps, who was visiting her aunt next door.
Steps smelled smoke from her aunt’s porch. She immediately leapt into action.
“I jumped the back fence and came through the back door,” she said.
Through the smoke, she frantically searched for Powell.
“I just put my shirt over my face because I knew he was in here to try to come find him,” said Steps.
The smoke got so thick, she had to feel around to get through the house.
“So, I made my way to the front of the house where he was asleep on the couch,” she said
Once she woke Powell up, he tried to douse the flames with water, but that only made things worse.
“So, I’m like, we gotta go,” said Steps.
She even helped carry Powell out of the house, who was reluctant to leave the place he’s called home for 50 years.
“I’m just happy he’s safe,” said Steps.
Powell’s daughter said, she’s forever grateful.
“Thank you thank you thank you for saving my Daddy. Thank you,” Dana Powell said, as she hugged Cathryn’s neck.
Dana said, after just losing her mother, the thought of losing her Daddy is unbearable.
“Thanking God that he’s safe and sound,” Dana said.
She’s also thanking God for Cathryn.
“She is the she-ro. She is awesome. I thank God for her,” said Dana.
“If I had to I’d do it again,” said Steps. “I saved somebody’s life, a good person too. He’s a good man.”
Emmitt Powell was not able to stay in the house Friday but thankfully, most of the damage was contained to his kitchen.
“Sprinting into action, she entered the burning home to find the elderly occupant sleeping. She escorted him to safety, saving his life!” The St. Louis Fire Department said in a tweet.
The fire department put out the fire quickly and no one was injured.
